How to Improve Marketing ROI with the Right Call Tracking Metrics

Your phone is ringing, but do you know who is on the other end of that phone call—or what led them to call your business in the first place? You might be able to learn by utilizing a process known as analytic call tracking. Call tracking metrics combined with specially designed call tracking software can help give you a better overview of your marketing ROI, allowing you to use your incoming calls to improve your overall advertising strategy.

What is Call Tracking?

Call tracking allows you to monitor specific phone numbers—what type they are, where they’re located, etc. This is done with unique, campaign-only phone numbers businesses can use specifically for advertising campaigns. Essentially, when a call comes through, the tracking software program notes it.

How to Use Call Tracking

Call tracking can be used on almost any advertising campaign, including television spots, mailed flyers, and billboards. As long as there is a place to share a phone number, call tracking is available. However, before investing in call tracking, it is best to lay out the goals your business has in mind. Your marketing campaign should have a goal, such as generating 20 new leads or increasing online purchasing by 15%. Call tracking metrics will help you understand how close you are to obtaining those goals and what you may need to do to improve.

Advantages of Call Tracking for ROI

There are several advantages of using a different phone number in an advertising campaign. First, it saves your employees having to ask a customer to provide information on how they heard of your business. For example, while a customer may have heard the first advertisement via word-of-mouth, he or she may have actually been prompted to call by a newsletter mailer. Call tracking will help businesses note where the original impression came from, rather than relying on customers to tell them. Furthermore, it prevents the business from canceling or scaling back the effective marketing (the newsletter mailer) because they may not think it is working for their advertising needs.

In addition, a designated line per advertising campaign allows you to track several different marketing platforms at once. This allows you to do a side by side comparison of ROI. It is important to note when, say a sponsored post on Facebook, is receiving 29 calls per day versus a newspaper advertisement only generating two calls. This could potentially save your business a substantial amount of money by pointing out what is and is not working to generate leads.

Valpak offers several additional bonuses for call tracking. Call recordings are part of the package offered to businesses to give them the ability to perform quality control. After all, phone calls are often the first time a person will communicate one-on-one with a business, so it is important to ensure that employees are giving off a good impression to a new or potential customer.

Valpak also tracks call volume, which can help pinpoint advertisements that are sent out at certain times. For example, a business may receive more phone calls when a radio advertisement is aired or during rush hour when a larger number of cars are driving past a billboard. Understanding when peak call times are can aid in deciphering return on investment marketing.

Putting Call Tracking to Use

Step one in utilizing call tracking is understanding your campaign goals. By knowing what you want from your advertising, you can determine if call tracking will have a high ROI and if you have the staffing to take on a call-centered campaign. If you determine that call tracking is the investment for you, determine which metrics you would like to measure. With reputable and trusted call tracking provided by businesses such as Valpak, you can look at lead generation, call quality, and/or traffic and volume. By tracking calls, your business can pick up knowing that their business is ready for whomever is on the other line.